https://boards.hellobee.com/ Pregnancy, Baby and Parenting blog, by Hellobee en Sat, 11 Apr 2026 23:25:16 +0000 https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/quiet-activity-during-read-aloud#post-2922202 Sun, 24 Jan 2021 13:45:09 +0000 Corduroy 2922202@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>My family started reading Harry Potter recently. My 5.5yo wants to listen (he's seen the movie) but isn't quite ready to sit quietly for a chapter -which I think is perfectly typical for his age. We're really reading for our almost 8yo. The friction we're facing is that DS interrupts when he loses focus on the story. It's not a problem for him of course but it's frustrating for the rest of us.</p> <p>He is not required to stay in the room and we've encouraged him to go do something else if he wants but he wants to listen. </p> <p>I've encouraged different balance and movement toys but they only work for a few seconds. Are there other activities that might help him sit quietly? I'm thinking like the kid equivalent of knitting but I don't know what that might be. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/books-for-15-year-old#post-2920865 Mon, 16 Nov 2020 12:33:59 +0000 Umbreon 2920865@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>Anyone have any recommendations for a 1.5 year old?</p> <p>He really likes trying to find things... for example in Goodnight Moon, the mouse is on nearly every page and he loves trying to find it. </p> <p>Or maybe a good potty training book for him?</p> <p>He loves books... but we need new ones. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/book-recommendations-for-4-year-old#post-2912298 Wed, 18 Mar 2020 14:21:09 +0000 MLE81 2912298@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>I want to order some books for my DD for her upcoming 4th birthday. Any suggestions for what she might enjoy? </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/best-chapter-books-to-read-aloud-to-kindergarteners#post-2881204 Wed, 17 Apr 2019 20:13:48 +0000 LemonJack 2881204@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>I’m looking for chapter book suggestions to read aloud to our older DD, who is nearly 5. She likes the Magic Tree House series, and recently has been loving the Chronicles of Narnia. We have family who love to gift books for birthdays, so I would like some suggestions for other books she might like. We have a lot of the classics from when we were kids, including Roald Dahl books, the Ramona series, Charlotte’s Web, and many others, but I’m sure there are lots of classics we don’t have either, so I’m open to all suggestions! </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/favorite-usborne-books-for-preschoolers#post-2880315 Wed, 10 Apr 2019 19:10:58 +0000 autumnleaves 2880315@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>Does anyone have recommendations for Usborne books kids 3-5? We have the All Better book and 1000 things that go but am looking to get a few more at an upcoming book fair. TIA </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/please-post-your-favorite-book-need-to-add-to-library#post-2867959 Mon, 21 Jan 2019 17:41:58 +0000 wrkbrk 2867959@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>Ages 3-4. I am trying to encourage my son's interest in listening to stories and it seems to be working ... but now that he is wanting to read I find myself wishing I had more thoughtfully cultivated our library. Most of the books that we have were gifts or hand me downs. Or books that make noise (my favorite - not).<br /> What is your child's favorite story?<br /> TIA!!<br /> PS Mine as a child was Corduroy so we have that. Thinking of things along those lines. :) I'll Love You Forever and Where the Wild Things are are two more that we have that I consider "classic." </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/introducing-star-wars-in-books#post-2869554 Tue, 29 Jan 2019 20:36:49 +0000 irene 2869554@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>This may be completely not doable but I need advice from this knowledgable community!</p> <p>DS is a 7 yo boy and we are not Star Wars fans. To be honest I don't think I ever finished a whole film without walking away or falling asleep :meh: . DH attempted to introduce DS to the basic Star Wars world by inviting him to watch Star Wars with him, which DS always declined claiming "it is too scary". So in a way, he missed out on quite a lot of references for the past few years. For example, he first learned what a Jedi means / is when he went to a classmate's Jedi training birthday party 2 years ago. </p> <p>No big deal right? But I'd hate it if he continue to miss things out as this is a big part of the US pop culture. He used to love LEGOs a lot, recently it died down a little, so I want to sign him up on a LEGO summer camp for a week to hopefully bring back up the interest. Our school offers a Star Wars LEGO camp which he didn't want to go because of, well, Star Wars. </p> <p>I am thinking, can I even contemplate introducing him to Star Wars through reading? We have just started reading Harry Potter in November (I read to him at bedtime -- the real chapter books with no pictures, not the illustrated versions or comics), and it was a major success! We finished reading the first book a few weeks ago, watched the first movie, and DS insisted to start with the 2nd one. If I were to introduce him to Harry Potter via the movies he definitely would not have been interested. So I started looking up Star Wars books. Apparently the film is not based on books, and I read that it was ghost-written by Alan Dean Foster after the movies were in production. Did any of you ever read the Star Wars book and if so, was it even friendly to 7 yo kids? If this is a doable concept, where would you recommend me to start to introduce the most basic interest of Star Wars to DS? Which chapter book should I start with? (is that even how it works?)</p> <p>Thank you so much in advance! </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/sibling-books#post-2866864 Tue, 15 Jan 2019 23:12:52 +0000 DesertDreams88 2866864@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>DS (age 3) still has trouble being aggressive towards his sister, age 11 months. I want to stock up our library with books that include siblings who get along, even if that isn't the focus of the plot. I'd prefer boy-girl siblings, older boy younger girl, and/or human characters. Any favorites? </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/first-chapter-books#post-2842768 Fri, 31 Aug 2018 06:14:58 +0000 jhd 2842768@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>DS1 is 4 and I think he might enjoy us reading a chapter book together before bed. What are your favorites? </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/harry-potter-when-to-start#post-2865601 Tue, 08 Jan 2019 14:54:47 +0000 mrsbookworm 2865601@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>When will you start reading Harry Potter with your child? Will you start with the classic books or the illustrated series? I’m excited to read them with my children, but can’t decide when is the “right” time to start. (Piggybacking off of Mrs. Chocolate’s post about books😀) </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/audiobooks-for-preschoolertoddler#post-2862634 Tue, 18 Dec 2018 11:53:13 +0000 castilrm 2862634@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>Hi all! My husband and I are taking our 1 and 3 year old girls on a long road trip over the holidays. The drive will likely take 8-10 hours depending on the number of and length of stops. We have travel art supplies, toys, and an iPad but we thought audiobooks would be a fun distraction for them as well. Any suggestions on audiobooks for that age range? Bonus points for ones with music/singing or in an anthology of sorts with multiple books on a CD. I assume most are fairly short and I don’t want to have 20 different books/CDs with us in the car. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/8-yo-girl-book-set-suggestions#post-2857527 Mon, 19 Nov 2018 15:40:10 +0000 Sams Mom 2857527@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>My nearly 8 year old niece asked for books for Christmas. She has been reading The Hardy Boys, but already has many of those books. I am looking for suggestions for a book set that is mystery or adventure within her age group. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/zootles-vs-ranger-rick-jr-kids-magazines#post-2847818 Fri, 28 Sep 2018 08:39:24 +0000 peachykeen 2847818@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>Trying to decide on a magazine subscription for my 4yo DD. Has anyone subscribed to Zootles or Ranger Rick Jr? I like the idea with Zootles of focusing on a single animal per issue (seems like she might reread those more) but they only offer 6 issues/year compared to Rick Jr's 10 issues. Any thoughts or experiences?</p> <p>Thanks in advance! </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/best-big-brother-books#post-2844365 Sun, 09 Sep 2018 20:08:23 +0000 lioneyes 2844365@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>DS has a bday coming up and I want to get some new books as a gift. Might be good to get him a few about becoming a big bro since that’s happening soon and he is like whaaaatever about it. Any suggestions? I prefer something not too cheesy. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/horse-chapter-books-for-a-six-year-old#post-2828706 Fri, 15 Jun 2018 21:14:42 +0000 PinkElephant 2828706@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>Any recommendations for books about girls and horses for bedtime reading (mostly me doing the reading) with my six year old daughter? </p> <p>DD1 and I just finished reading "Me and Katie (The Pest)" by Ann M. Martin (yes, the author of the Babysitter's Club books), and the poor girl cried her eyes out when it was over and I had to tell her there wasn't another book in a series about the characters. Seriously, I cannot tell you how heartbroken she is. It's adorable, but sad at the same time! So....I'm looking for some other books she might love as much.</p> <p>I remember a series called "The Saddle Club" from when I was young, but it appears the books are out of print and our library doesn't have them. We've already exhausted the horse-themed books in the "Babysitter's Little Sister" series by the same author. :silly: </p> <p>Thanks for your ideas!!! </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/explaining-conception-and-birth-to-a-6yo#post-2817817 Sun, 22 Apr 2018 21:40:11 +0000 bhbee 2817817@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>Please help me with books / websites / other amazing recs :happy: </p> <p>We’re having #3 this summer and my oldest is 6, so old enough to really have a lot of questions about the process. I don’t want to freak her out but want to be appropriately truthful. So far I am pretty much dancing around it and she isn’t pushing it but I’d like to do better. The questions seem to be coming up more as we get closer and the kids spend a lot of time playing “baby in my tummy” and “let’s go to the hospital to get the baby out”. My 3yo son told my husband at bedtime that one stuffed animal was pooping out his baby :silly: (I’m not really worried about the 3yo understanding - just thought that was funny!) </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/books-about-personal-space#post-2815564 Wed, 11 Apr 2018 05:27:21 +0000 mrswin 2815564@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>Any suggestion for a book geared towards the 3-4 year old range about respecting people’s personal space.</p> <p>My DD is very affectionate and got bitten at school twice last week by different kids. When I spoke with her teacher she thinks it is because she is getting in other LO’s faces and they react by pushing or biting. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/read-along-books#post-2804701 Fri, 16 Feb 2018 16:09:41 +0000 Eminthevalley 2804701@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>When I was a kid, I adored read-along books. They are books that come with a sound recording, and there’s a chime or other signal sound to turn the page. My five year old twins were recently gifted one with a CD and they’re obsessed...where can I get more? Our library doesn’t have them. They do have kids’ audiobooks, but not with the chimes to turn the pages, so they can’t really read along.<br /> Is there a website with mp3 files? </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/chapter-books-for-four-year-olds#post-2800450 Mon, 29 Jan 2018 07:58:44 +0000 erinbaderin 2800450@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>For Christmas I got my son the My Father’s Dragon series, and he LOVED it - we’ve basically been reading it on a loop for the last two weeks. I think he’s really enjoying the serialized aspect of it, reading four chapters a night instead of four smaller books. Can anybody recommend some other simple chapter books that would be good so we can take a break from Elmer Elevator? </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/how-to-approach-learning-to-read#post-2781369 Mon, 23 Oct 2017 08:43:38 +0000 rnmcdonnell 2781369@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>Hi everyone,<br /> I have an almost 5-year-old who is a bright kid and has always been in good daycare/preschool/pre-k program(s). I thought she'd be an early reader when she could recognize all her classmates' names by sight before she was 3. However, her reading skills haven't progressed in the trajectory that I would have expected since then. She knows her letters, and is capable of trying to sound out some words to spell with help. But if you ask her to read a word, she's lost unless she happens to recognize it (names or some sight words).</p> <p>I'm pretty laid back and usually don't do much "active" teaching, outside of the typical playtime activities (singing songs, counting toys, etc), since she's been in great programs and has always been ahead of the curve and I want her to learn in her own way at her own pace. But I'm having trouble figuring out how to approach reading in that way, and not sure if I should just let it go and trust that she will learn it in school, or if I should get more involved. </p> <p>If the latter, what do people recommend for tactics for getting their kids beyond the hump of seeing words to actually trying to read? If the former, is it pretty common that kids would be recognizing some sight words by 3 and 2 years later not have progressed on to phonics/other reading skills?</p> <p>I'm definitely not a mom who is obsessed with my kid reading WSJ by the time she's in kindergarten, just not really sure if this is an area where I should continue to be passive, and tactics to try (whether I should be more active or not).</p> <p>Sorry that was so long, but thanks for any advice!! </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/books-about-feelings-1#post-2779084 Wed, 11 Oct 2017 16:49:52 +0000 MrsBucky 2779084@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>My son is 2.5 and we are trying hard to reflect his feelings when he is upset. But if we say “it seems like you’re upset/frustrated/angry/ don’t like that” he gets upset and screams “I’m not ______ I’m happy!!!” While throwing a fit. If we ask how he is feeling, he says he has no feelings. I get it, he is two. But I’m wondering if reading a book describing different kinds of feelings would be helpful (he LOVES books). Any ideas? </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/usborne-books-for-4-year-old#post-2777701 Wed, 04 Oct 2017 19:28:12 +0000 travellingbee 2777701@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>Any sugggestions for usborne books for my 4 year old boy? He's not particularly into dinos or trucks or any particular non fiction topic. He likes superheroes and I spy books and funny stories. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/when-did-you-start-chapter-books#post-2750276 Wed, 21 Jun 2017 11:57:19 +0000 littlejoy 2750276@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>LO is 3.5, and we're still struggling with bedtime (forever and always). </p> <p>DH wondered if starting chapter books might be better than asking LO to pick a few story books before bed. 1) He thinks she'll enjoy longer stories ... 2) I think we're overstimulating her by inviting her to choose books, and then since she knows them by heart, she's "reading" them outloud along with us. By the time we're done reading, she's not seeming tired (even though she is).</p> <p>So, is it too early to start? If not, what are some series or books your LO's love?? She's very into imagination, fairies, unicorns, nature and animals. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/do-you-read-to-your-older-child-in-a-chair-or-in-their-bed#post-2750529 Wed, 21 Jun 2017 18:53:19 +0000 littlejoy 2750529@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>I posted about chapter books this morning (thank you for the wonderful suggestions), which got me to thinking: do you all read to your older kiddo in a chair or in their bed? </p> <p>We recently started reading in her bed, but she's constantly putting her feet on the wall, messing with the blankets, or doing anything except focusing on the books. I'm more comfortable in her bed (because I'm approximately 528 months pregnant), but I wonder if a reading chair is a better idea for focus. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/whats-your-2-year-olds-favorite-book#post-2748747 Sat, 17 Jun 2017 16:56:31 +0000 Portboston 2748747@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>Currently DS loves Mr Tiger Goes Wild &amp; EIEIO How Old McDonald Got His Farm. </p> <p>What are your 2 year olds favorites? We need to fill our shelves with some new ones! </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/books-to-help-ease-toddler-into-being-a-big-sister#post-2748994 Sun, 18 Jun 2017 22:53:24 +0000 CatchAFallingStar 2748994@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>Now that I'm pregnant (EEEEK! :grin: ) I want to start easing my 2 1/2 year old daughter into the idea of being a big sister and having a loud, needy, attention-stealing baby around. What books would you recommend to read to her? </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/baby-just-wants-to-eat-books#post-2739801 Thu, 25 May 2017 04:43:02 +0000 thepicklemonster 2739801@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>This seems ridiculous but I have insomnia at 2:30 am, so why not post this lingering question I have... My DS is 7 months old and it seems impossible to read to him because he just wants to put the book and in his mouth! Whenever I try to read, he literally wrestles the book out of my hand the ENTIRE time. I'm lucky if I am read two words before I give up. He has two teeth but isn't getting any new ones right now. He'll grow out of this, right?! (Totally not a serious problem, I know, but I had envisioned sitting in the glider snuggled up and reading to my little guy and it's not happening!) </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/reading-kids-5#post-2733600 Thu, 11 May 2017 08:30:00 +0000 Bao 2733600@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>What does reading look like for your LO that is 5+? Do you still primarily read books to them? (picture books? chapter books? both?), or do they read a lot on their own? My LO will be 5 in a few months and we still read her picture books 90% of the time. We are working our way through a chapter book but it's slow going. She will read a little bit here and there on her own but is no where near going solo with it. </p> <p>What does reading at home look like for your older LO? </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/what-did-you-read-at-bedtime#post-2595006 Thu, 28 Jul 2016 22:31:25 +0000 autumnlove 2595006@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>I read Amelia Bedilia and the cat, Peppa Pig and the Vegetable Garden and Brown Bear. We also looked for stuff in one of those Finding Things books! </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/first-chapter-book-for-5-year-old#post-2725471 Mon, 17 Apr 2017 20:56:28 +0000 BeachMama 2725471@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>I'm thinking about starting a chapter book with my 5 year old daughter. Any suggestions of books your kids have enjoyed? </p>